Traditions often change when brought over to a different country, sometimes to fit the local culture, other times due to misunderstanding. A combination of both is how Valentine’s Day in Japan morphed into a holiday where women give chocolates both out of genuine affection and out of obligation. Its unique culture of reciprocal gifting also spawned a whole different holiday where men return the favor threefold. Read full article here
Education
Overcoming Bias
Kai Cheng’s professor had a brilliant scheme. In his first lecture, he promised that each lecture would feature a “Lie of the Day”. But why? It made his students more attentive and analytical, poring over every detail of his lecture and making sense of why things were true. It was such a powerful teaching method that his students digested his most technical lectures quite easily because they tried so hard to catch his lie. The kicker? There was no lie in that first lecture; he had lied about that too! Read full article here